1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for pressure testing of valves, pipe, or fittings.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Valve testing machines have been utilized for pressure testing of valves and other types of products, such as pipe or fittings, wherein a pressurized fluid, such as air or water, is pumped into the valve, pipe, or fitting, to pressurize the interior of the valve, pipe, or fitting. Such valve testing machines typically require the valve, or other product, to be tested., to be clamped within the valve testing machine, and the opening, or openings, of the valve, pipe, or fitting, is sealed, whereby the interior of the valve, or other product, may be pressurized as desired. Typically, a seal head for each end of the valve, or other product, which has an opening, is fixedly secured within the valve testing machine, as by the use of screws, nuts, bolts, or similar equipment, which requires the valve testing machine operator to tighten the screws, nuts and/or bolts with screwdrivers or wrenches, or similar equipment. The valves, and other products to be pressure tested can have a variety of different types of end configurations, such as flanged, buttwelded, socket welded, female threaded, or any other type of end configuration found on a valve, type, or other type of fitting. Each time a different valve, or a valve having a different end configuration, is to be tested on the valve testing machine, it is necessary to remove the seal head, previously fixedly secured within the valve testing machine, and to install a different seal head, which may have either a different construction, or is sized differently, from the seal head previously installed within the valve testing machine. Removing the previous seal head, and installing another seal head, is a time consuming, labor intensive operation, which is inefficient because of the necessity of loosening previously tightened nuts, bolts, and/or screws, and then retightening such nuts, bolts, and/or screws for the next seal head utilized in the valve testing machine.
Accordingly, prior to the development of the present invention, there has been no method and apparatus for pressure testing of valves, and other products, which: are simple and economical to manufacture; are efficient and economical to use; and do not require the use of nuts, bolts, and/or screws, to fixedly secure a seal head within a valve testing machine. Therefore, the art has sought a method and apparatus for pressure testing of valves, and other products, which: are simple and economical to manufacture; are easily and efficiently used; and do not require nuts, bolts, and/or screws to fixedly secure a seal head within a valve testing machine.